I started out using 727s long ago, then switched to Vic Firth Dave Weckls, then switched to ProMark Shira Kashi Oak 5As. I'm now using Hornet 7As that I originally got just for my e-kit. I started using the Hornets on my a-kit, and as of right now they are my favorites.

I can pretty much play any 5A or 5B from most companies. I stay pretty much with 5A or 85A sticks from Vic Firth. I work at a music store so I have various sizes from various brands up to about 5b and including signature sticks. I'm not all too picky about sizes... my favorite sticks at the moment are the Buddy Rich signature and the Tommy Igoe signature from Vic Firth.

But man oh man!!! Me and the guy rolled the sticks on the ground when picking out a pair and I've NEVER seen a pair of sticks bowed SO badly! He put them back in the little sleeve and they were bowing outward in a "Y" form.

I feel the 5B's are too heavy and the 5A's I break through.

I've been considering giving Vater a try again.
Good or bad expierences??

I am sorry for the negative experience with the sticks. Can I ask where you got them from? Since the beginning of the year we have made some big changes to our manufacturing process. The sticks are now cut on centerless grinding machines as opposed to the back knife lathing process we originally had. This process makes more consistent sticks with lower moisture content bringing down the opportunity for warpage. The original design did warp quite a bit and is a problem that kept coming up. That is why we made these changes to try and improve the stick.

But man oh man!!! Me and the guy rolled the sticks on the ground when picking out a pair and I've NEVER seen a pair of sticks bowed SO badly! He put them back in the little sleeve and they were bowing outward in a "Y" form.

I feel the 5B's are too heavy and the 5A's I break through.

I've been considering giving Vater a try again.
Good or bad expierences??

I used promark 7A for 1st 4 years but realised i needed bigger sticks for more volume (bigger venues). Just this year I started using Vic's 5A (always wood tip for me), much more versatile & comfy in my hands. I dont hit the s**t out of my drums but I do constant rimshots & a pair can last me around 20-25 hours of playing, 30 sometimes.

Funny I tried Vic extreme 5A & they broke much much quicker than the regular 5A.

I will try out Vater's & ProMark's 5A to compare. Very curious about Los Cabos sticks but cannot find them here in Oz!!

I grew up on Regal Tip 5A's, and a couple of years ago I bought a brick of Vater Los Angeles (5A) sticks, but I stick with the Vic Firths for some reason. It must be that nice bead - and if I flip them around, I have enough weight to really slam too.

I tried the Ahead sticks, and I had high hopes that they would work out for me, but they didn't.

I've used Promark 737's for years. I find they rarely break on me, they just wear away until there is no tip left. Nice and light so I get a little faster speed with less work. I play a lot of country and blues though - lots of fast shuffles.

I've got used to playing with thick sticks (Vater 5B's, .605" thick), even I thought I wanted to buy thicker sticks (2B's or Virgil Donati's signature). I don't know why, but I like playing on 5B's better than 5A's, even on 210-230 bpm metal, I like the thick feel and the powerful impact on less energy (How on earth, my hands?). I used to experiment on thicker sticks, and so, I'm used to them. Although I do play progressive rock, some jazz, and fusion music, sometimes I tend to play metal songs, especially on technical death metal, but obviously it's just that however, they're a little too heavy to blast-beat quicker. And I'm not a big fan of 280 bpm music, though! So, 5B's are still my choice.

But anyway, I'm on the mood to play more jazz fusion, so I'm really craving for thinner sticks. But on the other side, my hands have this kind of medium-to-far reach, and I'm going to miss my 5B's, because habitually I'm used to playing with thick sticks. However, I'm going to leave this habit if possible, because I'll try to get used to playing jazz fusion music, just trying some new things, generally speaking. So, I'll try to find another ones. If it appeared that I can't find some, I'll stick with my Vic Firth Akira Jimbo sticks, since I lost some sticks a little thicker than Akira's, but thinner than my 5B's. Sad. My target, if available for a buy, is going to be some .570" - .580" thick sticks. I'm somewhat afraid if I get to break some .565" sticks or even thinner.

Vater's 5Bs are my dream stick also. Right now I'm using Zildjians Brooks Wackerman models because I haven't had the funds to buy new sticks - but soon hopefully.The BW signatures are pretty close to Vater 5Bs. They might be a little lighter, but in size I can tell no difference.

Well, like a lot of drummers tend to do, I've changed up my stick arsenal yet again. My main go-to stick, that I use 95% of the time now, is the wonderful Vater Los Angeles 5A wood tip. I've tried Vater sticks a few times over the years, and while I liked the quality of their sticks, they almost always felt heavy to me. I don't know what Vater has changed, if anything, but the LA 5A's I've been using for the last few months are the highest quality, best built, best feeling sticks I've played in quite some time. I like how the Vater 5A has a heavier front end for more throw, more of a rockin' 5A. Never say never, but I think I've found my forever stick.

For some of the smaller, quieter gigs I play, I'll cut my kit down to a 4 piece with 2 cymbals, and I'll use my Sweet ride as my main ride/crash (I normally use it as my big crash on my larger kit at louder gigs). My Sweet ride crashes very easily, and has decent stick definition if played lightly. I've found that the Vater Manhattan 7A, with its round wood tip, gets even more stick definition out of my Sweet for ride patterns vs. an acorn tip. So, right now its all Vater for me, and I'm very happy with my 2 stick arsenal.

I'm not to picky about my stick sizes... I can play most any brand's 5A size sticks, whther they be just regular 5As or signature sticks.

I do have a long lasting love affair with the Vic Firth 85A. When I discovered that stick, I bought about 50 or so pairs of them when they went on sale for Black Friday. I use them for most any genre except for when I am playing pretty hard for whatever reason.

I also fell in love with the Vic firth Buddy Rich stick. I use it for rock, jazz and everything in between.

I have over 200 pairs of ticks, consisting of most of the major brands in sizes from 5A to some 5B weight sizes (including many types of signature sticks from Vic Firth and ProMark). I use to work at Guitar Center, so my prices were cheap, and I would stockpile all types of sticks, since they were so cheap and I play so much. I ma play with a different type of sticks everytime I play... regardless of genre, whatever feels right on that day!

With my around 52 pairs of sticks, I thought being a little drumsticks fanatic. You beat me with your over 200!... It's so fun to collect and try different brands (5A in my case). Maybe it will be a good idea for me to work also in a music store ? ;-)

Definetly the vater 5a. They hold up like a vic 2b. Very comfortable and versatile stick . If anyone has problems with sticks slipping because of sweat, vater makes a series called nude. They do not have the "famous vater laquer", so the stick absorbs sweat, as opposed to a laquered stick leaving sweat all over the top not allowing sweat to sink in.

After trying everything under the sun, I've settled on the Vic Firth Dave Weckl design. It just works for me without drama. The only other stick I've ever liked as much were some carbon-fiber 5A sticks back in my heavy-hitting days in the 80s, but I don't remember the vendor. I do know that they are long, long gone now: they only lasted a few years. But damn, those sticks were nearly immortal. I still have 3 or 4 of them, but the logos wore off a long time back...

Wow.. I feel like I am using the big sticks after reading a few pages of this thread. It seems that most play 5A or 5B. I guess I have been using larger diameter sticks for the longest time and have not changed too much.

I used to use Vic Firth SD-1s. They had a nice weight forward feel to them. They seemed perfect for laying into the bell on the ride. Until very recently, I was on a Vic Firth "Metal N" kick. They were also pretty beefy and LONG. So I had been breaking a few and needed to replace the breakage when I tried Vic Firth "Rock N". I think I will switch to these for a while. They are a tad shorter than the Metals, but overall, the same diameter and better balance.

It's funny. I was going back and forth on a practice pad between the Metals and the Rock, and it seemed that the Metals had a tad more vibration to them. I am not sure if such a small difference in length is the cause, but I feel I have a little more finesse and control with these.

I am glad that there are gobs of sticks to choose from. I also tried the VF 2Bs, but there was too much a difference between the length between the 2Bs and the Metals to get comfy with. The 2Bs felt as though part of the stick was missing.

Is it just me, or do the other companies not carry much in the way of larger diameter sticks? It might just be that Vic Firth seem to be the easiest to find. I think I need to do some research to see what Vater, and others have that are comparable to VF Rock/Metal. Those seem to be a good fit for me. I realize that they carry a little of a cheese ball name, but besides the inside joke of using them, I don't care what they call em.

LOL, It seems that GC is a little like a POW camp for drum equipment. Besides the abused items on the floor, everything else of value and interest is kept under lock and key. All the other sticks are behind the counter. They must have a HUGE loss prevention problem. All the cymbals are bolted down, or kept prisoner in a long cymbal cage. A bit of a side note, but this is a huge turn off to buying anything from them.

Anyway, off to another sweet local store tomorrow to try some more sticks out.

I've always sworn by the Zildjian 7A wood tips and said I wouldn't swap for anything.....but a drum shop close to me had the Zildjian Dennis Chambers sticks on half price, so I grabbed a couple of pairs and these things are AMAZING! I'm definitely a convert to the DC sticks :)

I used to really love Vic Firth Zoros, but I broke a lot of them with bad technique. Then I got into the Extreme 5a for a long while. Then Vater Fusions, and now I'm playing around with Fatback 3As, West Sides, and the Derek Roddy signature. By the time i'm 20, I estimate I will be using Paul Rennick marching snare sticks...

I like the Zildjian Hickory Series Black 5B wood tips. I use Vic firth 7A for some progressive tunes. I found the Zildjians by grabbing a couple pair out of a reduced bin. Originally because since I have a black set it would look good and they were cheap. Now I really love them.

Regal Tip: Tich Stix (Brian Tichy model) I love these. Great balance and they last.
Regal Tip: Alex Van Halen model-when you REALLY want reach!
Ahead: Tommy Lee Studio-My all time favorite! I use em when practicing and when playing heavy.
Vic Firth: American Metal (with and without nylon tip) Great balance. The former Tommy Lee model stick.